1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image formation apparatus such as printer and copier and an image formation method for forming a three dimensional (3D) image by applying an electrophotograph method or an electrostatic recording method and using foaming toner. More specifically, the present invention relates to an image formation apparatus and an image formation method which have a color conversion function to realize identical coloration of image formed with an ordinary color image formation method and a 3D image formation method that forms color image on foaming toner.
2. Description of Related Arts
Typically, conventional image formation apparatuses such as printers and copiers using an electrophotograph method or an electrostatic recording method have been formed a monochrome or full-color image such as character, graphic image and photograph on a plane recording medium such as recording paper, to allow the image formed on the recording medium to be visually recognized for the transmission of desired data.
If, on the other hand, image data could be represented three dimensionally, reality for the image is enhanced, in addition to the possibility to use additional sense-tactile-.
As techniques of three dimensionally printing an image such as Braille characters and topographical maps by electrophotograph method, the techniques disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid Open No. 2000-131875 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-134006 are known.
These publications describe image formation methods in which 3D images are formed during, for example, electrophotograph recording process by placing a toner image containing color materials of predetermined colors on a foaming toner image, foaming the foaming toner image by the heat generated in fixation process, and melting and adhering the toner image of each color on the forming toner-made image.
On the other hand, in an ordinary color image formation, toner of predetermined colors is placed on a recording medium, the toner is melt and adhered onto the recording medium directly according to the image data and fixing a mixture of color toners of multiple colors as a color image.
FIGS. 10A and 10B are schematic sectional views, respectively, illustrating a color image (ordinary print image) formed on a recording medium by an ordinary image formation method, and a 3D color image (3D print image) formed on recording medium by fixing toners of each color on a foaming toner, using a conventional image formation apparatus.
The ordinary print image shown in FIG. 10A is fixed on a plane recording paper and thus generates less scattered reflection (shown by the arrow of solid line) while the 3D print image shown in FIG. 10B tends to generate an increased diffusion of reflection (shown by the arrow of solid line) due to convexo-concave portions of a color image made of ordinary toners that is formed by foaming the foaming toners on the recording paper.
The above difference has caused a problem in which even the ordinary print image and the 3D print image have been created with the same color data, they produce visually-different coloration, thereby causing deteriorated image quality of a resulted print.